[matthewhypolite]

  I too find Tyll's reviews interesting but all over the lot...i did take his advice regarding the Moon 430 amp which I love but his changing his tune about headphones he raved about a couple of months ago gets a bit old quickly......

From my perspective it doesnt seem like he changes his tune. The HEK was knocked off the wall wall but his description of the HEK now doesn't appear different to me than when he originally reviewed it. His and Jude's opinion on the new focals seem to align also.

In any event, reviews on headphones, like reviews for most things, is subjective regardless of how you look at it, even user's opinions on this very forum is also subjective. The abyss for e.g. gets huge praise by headfiers on the abyss forums, but was disliked by Tyll and reasons stated why he dislike them. Some of them i can agree with, being an Abyss owner. But despite the flaws i still love the cans.
 
The key thing i take away from reviews is, how they align with my personal preference and what im looking for. So if to me, bass is the most important thing, and im ok with "good/average" midrange, and an experience reviewer says, X cans has great bass but lacks midrange, then i know how to apply that review towards my decision/purchase. Tyll says the HEK still has the warm lush laid back tonality, and this is the reason he puts the more dynamic focals ahead of it? I agree with that statement. Because i have both the HEK and Abyss, and the reason i keep both cans, is because the Abyss destroys the HEK in terms of dynamism and visceral impact. So when i read his Focal reviews, what i apply to my own decision is. HEK = more/better bass, but Focal = Better overall across the spectrum. If he said something like HEK bass sucks, then id be concerned.
 
Focals seem to be getting rave reviews across the board, Jude, Tyll, Other headfiers, cnet, etc. I'm actually considering a pair, would be great if i get some ears on though.

 

[matthewhypolite]

What I don't get is why Tylls WOF seems to be just the newest available headphones for the most part. The hot thing at the moment. For example taking the HE1000 off and then replacing it with the Utopia while saying its bass light and has a small soundstage. Well the HE1000 has neither of those problems and its $1000 less! I feel like he gets on board the hype train a bit at times even though he clearly sees the headphones for what they are if he can find specific faults like that for example.

I've got the Utopia coming in a few weeks for a trial so I'll get to see how it compares with the HE1000 on my own setup I'm very familiar with (Yggy/Studio 6)

 
The Staxx and HE400s is on the list, 2 relatively old headphones, the Staxx more so. so dont exactly agree with you there.

Looking forward to your Utopia/HEK comparison. The more of these we can get here on head-fi, the better for us folks who dont have the opportunity to demo ourselves.

 

[goldendarko]

The Staxx and HE400s is on the list, 2 relatively old headphones, the Staxx more so. so dont exactly agree with you there.


Looking forward to your Utopia/HEK comparison. The more of these we can get here on head-fi, the better for us folks who dont have the opportunity to demo ourselves.

Well I said for the most part, yes obviously it's not only new headphones. But follow the trend backwards and you'll see how every time some hot new headphone comes out last weeks hotness gets bumped. Which I'm all for if the headphone is truly better but his description of the Utopia makes it sound like a lesser version of the HE1000 for more money

Either way I'll make my own decision on this one. Still enjoy his reviews thoroughly just don't necessarily agree with the WOF.

 

[matthewhypolite]

Well I said for the most part, yes obviously it's not only new headphones. But follow the trend backwards and you'll see how every time some hot new headphone comes out last weeks hotness gets bumped. Which I'm all for if the headphone is truly better but his description of the Utopia makes it sound like a lesser version of the HE1000 for more money

Either way I'll make my own decision on this one. Still enjoy his reviews thoroughly just don't necessarily agree with the WOF.

Without hearing it ourselves its kinda hard to disagree with him lol. For all you know, when you get the focals on your head you'll be ready to sell your HEK

As more and more Headfiers get to demo the cans we'll see where things settle down after the hype train passes.

 

[goldendarko]

Without hearing it ourselves its kinda hard to disagree with him lol. For all you know, when you get the focals on your head you'll be ready to sell your HEK

No, don't say it! My wallet just ran away...

 

[john777]

Without hearing it ourselves its kinda hard to disagree with him lol. For all you know, when you get the focals on your head you'll be ready to sell your HEK


As more and more Headfiers get to demo the cans we'll see where things settle down after the hype train passes.

I'm going back to my Sennheiser 414s and wait for the dust to settle...

 

[joshuachew]

Anyone have experience with the HE1000 out of the balanced output of the AK380 amp?

 

[Oldfella]

I tried a little experiment. Tried Apple earbuds, for a few days.( Don't say it!.) Then onto cheap bluetooth over ears, then 598,Senn185, Koss ESP950,HD800,HEK. This has made me appreciate very much,what i have. Perhaps,we should pay more attention to what we have, rather than what we MUST have?. As stated many times,the difference between the 598, and HD800,is a hell of a lot,but 5 times better?.I Like the HD800, and the HEK,for the soundstage Depth/Width etc., so looking forward to impressions of people on here,of the latest phone,that we must have but for me, a smaller soundstage,is a no no. I won't go into the 846, Westone W60 V the HD800 debate,as,for me,different horses,for different courses. Blimey!. I haven't written as much for a long time!.

 

[xxx1313]

  Anyone have experience with the HE1000 out of the balanced output of the AK380 amp?

 
 
I have, with the balanced output of the AK380Cu+Cu amp. It drives the HEK quite easily and to a quite impressive quality. The HEK profits from the bass-punch of the AK380Cu + amp. Still very satisfied with that setup! It is definitely at least as good as other (desktop) DAC/amp-combinations in the same price range (5k), no matter if with HEK, HD800S (both balanced) or K812 (unbalanced of course).

 

[chowmein83]

  Having heard the Utopia and owning an HEK, apart from bass, how do you compare both headphones?
 

Sorry for the late response, but here are my impressions of the Utopia vs. HD800S vs. HE1000 as I wrote on the Utopia thread. The last bold sentence is a very concise summary of how I feel the HE1000 stacks up against the Utopia.
 
HD800S sounds a bit bright compared to the Utopia. To me, the Utopia sounds more natural. When compared to the HE1000, the Utopia sounds a bit brighter, though it is not a very big difference. HE1000 and Utopia are very comparable to me in terms of a realistic sounding frequency response.
 
As for the treble, the HD800S sounds like it has too much of it compared to the Utopia and the HE1000. Cymbals are somewhat unrestrained, and higher notes just seem a bit too sharp and exaggerated on the HD800S. The Utopia is definitely better behaved in this respect. Same for the HE1000. I don't find the Utopia and the HE1000 to be wildly different in the treble, but perhaps the Utopia does do a very slightly better job in maintaining a balance between detailed and restrained treble.
 
For the mids, again the HD800S sounds a bit exaggerated in its presentation compared to the Utopia and the HE1000. So less dry and more lively mids on the Utopia and HE1000 IMO.
 
As for bass, the HD800S actually does a pretty decent job. It extends down decently low, and is well-controlled and textured. The Utopia has more bass, but is no less detailed, textured, or well-controlled than the HD800S. Pretty impressive. I would rate it very similarly to the bass on the HE1000, which I think highly of. However, the HE1000's bass seems to have that extra bit of solidity to it that the Utopia lacks, though I must emphasize that is not a very big difference.
 
In terms of overall detail level, there's no doubt in my mind that the Utopia is more detailed than the HD800S. The Utopia manages to sound clearer than the HD800S by having less exaggerated treble (so you can actually hear the cymbal fade away instead of it ringing for a tiny bit too long) and simply being slightly less veiled and thus presenting more texture to the notes. Compared to the HE1000, I find the Utopia to be slightly behind. I'm not really sure how to explain it, but the Utopia seems to have a very, very slight veil on its notes compared to the HE1000.
 
For soundstaging, like its sibling I find this to be the weak point of the Focal Utopia. I simply feel that the HD800S has a better soundstage. Not only is the HD800S' soundstage wider, it is also deeper (not by much, but enough). And at least for me, I more appreciate the somewhat more ethereal, Stax-like quality in that imaging on the HD800S is more effortless and notes just seem to appear around you. Also, due to the reduced depth, layering is harder to distinguish for me on the Utopia than the HD800S, though not by a big amount. As for the comparison to the HE1000, again I feel the Utopia lacks in width and depth in comparison. Again, layering is harder for me to distinguish on the Utopia compared to the HE1000, and imaging is more effortless on the HE1000 (though I don't believe the HE1000 beats the HD800S here).
 
Conclusions:
 
Utopia: This, to me, is now the world's best dynamic driver headphone. IMO it's better than the HD800S. Finally we have something using a dynamic driver that can really compete and to me, even beat Sennheiser's creation. However, I cannot really agree with the reports of it being better than the likes of planars and electrostats like the HE1000 and the Stax SR-009. Personally, I found that it couldn't beat the HE1000 (maybe tie it at best) and based on my previous experiences with the SR-009, the Utopia can't outperform that either.
 
Don't get me wrong, the Utopia also has very good imaging and separation abilities, but they're only very good and not exceptional.
 
And finally, the weight. The Utopia definitely feels much better on the head than any Audeze LCD headphone that I've tried - it's simply less heavy and it doesn't clamp as hard. If you can wear the HE1000 comfortably, you'll find no problems with the Utopia - they were about as comfortable as each other for me. Sennheiser HD800S is still the most comfortable to me due to how it tightly fits around your head without needing to clamp hard, and simply because it's the lightest.
 
So yeah, I have a somewhat different opinion of the Utopia vs. the HE1000 compared to Tyll.

 

[gto88]

@chowmein83 Great comparison, it is really helpful.

 

[doctorjazz]

Agreed, @chowmein83, nice impressions. Tyll has his taste, which is just that, not the gospel.

 

[moshen]

I spent some time comparing the HE1000 & Utopia and also felt a tie in technicalities. However they are VERY different in presentation, so it's not really an apples to apples comparison. The Utopia really does sound extremely dynamic, punchy & clear. Definitely the best dynamic driver in a headphone I heard. Contrast it to the HE1000 which has better soundstage and a pleasant warm tone, but not nearly as punchy or dynamic. Hard to say w/o long term listening but I'd be worried the Utopia would cause listening fatigue wearing it for long hours from its dynamic sound.

 

[JeffMann]

  I spent some time comparing the HE1000 & Utopia and also felt a tie in technicalities. However they are VERY different in presentation, so it's not really an apples to apples comparison. The Utopia really does sound extremely dynamic, punchy & clear. Definitely the best dynamic driver in a headphone I heard. Contrast it to the HE1000 which has better soundstage and a pleasant warm tone, but not nearly as punchy or dynamic. Hard to say w/o long term listening but I'd be worried the Utopia would cause listening fatigue wearing it for long hours from its dynamic sound.

I only listen to classical music and opera. Which of the two headphones is more "musically accurate", which I define as the reproduced headphone sound that is closest to the sound of "real life" classical musical instruments and opera voices, which never sound "punchy" (and which only sound dynamically fast to an appropriate degree that is consistent with "real life" classical musical instruments)?
 
Jeff.

 

[moshen]

 
I only listen to classical music and opera. Which of the two headphones is more "musically accurate", which I define as the reproduced headphone sound that is closest to the sound of "real life" classical musical instruments and opera voices, which never sound "punchy" (and which only sound dynamically fast to an appropriate degree that is consistent with "real life" classical musical instruments)?
 
Jeff.

I'm not sure. I don't listen to classical or opera in live or headphone setting so I'm not a very good judge on which headphone would be better.